By The Light Divided
by I Heart Idina Menzel
Summary: An ancient prophecy foretells of two sisters destined to save Oz,but can a green outcast and a drama queen actually do it? Rewrite of Black Hole Sun.
1. Prologue:Genesis

It was bitterly cold, of course that was to be expected during winter, but the yearly coming of snow and sub-zero temperatures did not sooth the Ozians goosebumped skin and chattering teeth, no matter how many times winter came. This was especially true in Munchkinland, the bread basket of Oz, where with winter came the inability for anyone to make a living. Of course Munchkinlanders weren't idiots, they had planned ahead and had stored enough food to last them through a long winter, they just wished they had another trade that their state was good for, something that could bring them extra money. Money was an issue in Munchkinland, ever since Gillikin had started growing Munchkinberries, the state's number one export, there hadn't been as munch of money coming in. Even the governer and his wife were feeling the strain, right now however they were dealing with another problem.

"It's coming!"

Melena Thropp was twenty-three, ivory skinned, green-eyed and aurburn haired, not to mention heavily pregnant. She was also the subject of much gossip amongst Munchkinlanders. If only she knew.

The brown eyes of her husband, Frexspar, the governer of Munchkinland, widened in shock. His tall frame was made taller as he straightened his back like a soldier adressing his commanding officer. His black goatee tingled, and a bead of sweat ran from his bald head to his neck.

"What?"

Of course he knew what. How could he not? With the weird cravings and mood swings and such, he just didn't expect for it to happen now, a month before the doctor had predicted. And this certain doctor was never wrong.

"The baby's coming!" she shrieked, red-faced.

"How?"

Frexspar instantly regretted the question.

"How? How? I'll tell you how, when you stuck your forsaken cock in me! Now get this thing out of me before I cut it off! Get the midwife! Now!"

"No need, I'm here"

Karil Gespar was an Antelope in her early thirties, by human standards, and in her strong hands she carried two buckets filled with warm water, drapped over her equally strong shoulders were two towels. She sighed as she adressed Frexspar.

"No need sir, I'm here" and then she added to herself, "_as if anyone in Oz couldn't hear the ruckus going on in this house"_

"That's great, now would you two please get this damned thing out of me!"

Karil sighed again, she was used to dealing with delirous women, this one should be no different.

"First, the 'thing' is called a baby, second you need to relax Mrs. Thropp" the Antelope was attempting to insert some of her experiences and logic into the situation.

Unfortunately, that only seemed to make matters worse.

"Relax?! Relax?!" Melena bellowed, "You try relaxing when something is forcing it's way out of your cunt!"

Karil thrust her hoof into her pocket and pinched the neck of small bottle, she presented the yellow-brown conncoction to Melena.

"Here drink this. Trust me"

Without giving it a second thought, Melena uncorked the bottle and drank the contents in one go, eager for anything that would stop the unbearable pain. Within seconds she felt very tranquil, and very sleepy.

The midwife, having used this mixture before knew what it did and how fast it did it, she was ready.

"Mr. Thropp, get behind her"

Something in the Antelope's voice told him he shouldn't question her demand, and he quietly and quickly got behind his wife. And a good thing he did too, because almost as soon as he did, Melena fell backwards.

"What did you do to her?" the governer gasped under the weight of his wife.

"Morpheus Leaves" she explained, "relaxes the body and knocks the drinker out, and I'd say this dose should do her for about eight hours. Let's get her to the delivery room"

"Will that be enough time to get the baby out?" Frexspar questioned as he and the Antelope carried the sleeping Melena to the delivery room.

"Yes, when I say this stuff relaxes the body, I mean it"

X

Nearly eight hours had passed in the delivery room. With it's pastel colored walls, the room was meant to provide a relaxing enviroment to the expecting mother, or in this case, father, since said mother was still knocked out. Luckily for Frexspar, the baby was almost out.

"I think I see a nose" he said.

"There's a curl. Come on, almost there" Karil said, "There we go!"

The baby was out.

"It's a healthy, perfect, lovely little-"

At that time the clouds shielding the room from the moonlight parted, and what Karil saw made her stop in mid-sentence. And then she heard a shriek. She was certain it wasn't Frexspar's, the scream came from a women, and it sounded like Melena.

"Great Oz!" the governer's wife gasped.

Frexspar stood there, apalled, "How can this be? What the hell is going on here?"

"It's-it's-" Melena couldn't get the word out.

"Green" Karil and Frexspar said together.

"Take it away" Frexspar said, his entire body quaking as he looked at the floor.

"But-"

"Take it away!" he bellowed at the midwife, "Take it, and kill it!"

"I will take this child away, but not to kill, to find a place where she can grow up with love" Karil said.

Frexspar looked up to glare at her, "Who in Oz could love an atrocity like that?"

Karil didn't reply as she left the room.

X

Two hundred miles away in the courtyard of the Cloister of St. Glinda, the doctor who had predicted the green child's birth, thirty-seven year old Sibyll Keslar smiled. She knew the date she had given Frexspar was wrong, she knew that the baby was going to be born a month earlier, in fact she had caused it. If she hadn't have, the child's condition would have started showing up on the mother, and Frexspar would have surely terminated the pregnancy by whatever means possible.

"It's happened, hasn't it?"

Amina Koro was fifteen, Arjiki, her chocolate skin and blue diamond tattoos a stark contrast to the white snow around the puddle where her barefeet were, and _tall_. At eight feet, Amina was a mountain of a young woman, and she was muscular too, her arms and legs looked more like those of a professional wrestler than a teenage girl, she weighed three hundred and twelve pounds, and forty-five percent of it was muscle. Strangely, this didn't take away from her overall beauty, and Amina, despite what she said, was very beautiful. Her eyes were an odd shade of yellow gold that had an animalistic quality to them, canine in fact, and her shiny black hair, done in a mohawk tributed the first Arjiki defenderesses.

"Yes. And something else is about to happen, your spring term at Shiz"

Amina's mental strength matched that of her physical abilities.

At fifteen, Amina was the youngest person ever to be in the sophster class at Shiz University. To test her intelligence quota the maunts had her take an evaluation test, and they were surprised when they got the results back. Amina, the tall quiet Arjiki teenager, who spent most of her time sculpting beautiful scenes from scripture and playing the harp had outscored the former record holder by over one hundred points.

"Must we talk about this? We're both aware that my acceptance is just one of Shiz's games" she said, "I'm just a fun freakshow for the students and teachers; the Arjiki Giant. Not to mention my other problem"

Sibyll sighed, "Ah, yes, that. But don't let it get to you, you're going to do great things for your tribe, it's your destiny"

All was silent.

Siblly's eyes suddenly went out of focus, Amina had seen this before. When she returned to herself Siblly smiled.

"We're about to have a very special visitor. I'll try to contact her caretaker and warp them here"

X

Karil was beginning to wonder if she was doing the right thing by taking the green child all the way to the Cloister of St. Glinda, after all it was freezing, and it was a two day train ride. Perhaps it would have been better for her to take the baby home with her. But now, it was too late to turn back, she was nearly to the train station in Center Munch. She started to feel dizzy, and then...

_Karil, I am Sibyll Keslar, a maunt of the Cloister of St. Glinda and a soothsayer. I know of your intent to bring Elphaba here._

"Elphaba?" Karil whispered, looking down at the child.

_Yes, her name is Elphaba, a fitting name for this child for it means, she who grows strong through struggle._

Karil had to agree on that one, Elphaba's life was already a struggle.

_I am also a powerful sorceress, I will use my power to warp you and the child to me at the Cloister of St. Glinda. I promise neither of you will be harmed, I have done this before from much farther distances._

Karil wasn't sure what Sibyll meant, but she clutched the baby hard, and then she felt dizzy.

The sensation lasted for a moment and the sight Karil was before her was that of a very tall female Arjiki and a maunt.

The maunt smiled at her, "Hello Karil, and hello Elphaba"

X

Frexspar, who had been glaring at the ground was suddenly snapped out of his reverie by his screaming wife.

"I know, it's horrible. Green. How-?"

"Not that! Another one!"

Frexspar paled; another baby? Twins? What if this one was green as well? He'd take his chances and if there was something wrong with this one too, he'd kill it himself.

X

Karil stared wide-eyed at the Arjiki. Never had she seen a woman she tall or so muscular, she looked like she could break a grown male Bear in half with her barehands.

As if reading Karil's mind, the maunt answered, "Don't worry, the only thing she uses her hands for are to create beautiful sculptures. She is Amina Koro, and I am Sibyll Keslar"

"You're who spoke to me? Is there something you wish to tell me? About...Elphaba?"

"Yes. Something will happen, something that will change the face of Oz forever, and it has already begun. A man, not evil only misguided, will set out to punish those who have wrong him and his brothers and sisters. This child, when she grows up will stop him, along with her twin sister" Sibyll said.

"Twin sister?" Karil questioned, and then her fur stood on end, "Oh no. He'll kill it. If it's green he'll kill it"

"Frexspar Thropp will not kill the girl" Sibyll replied, "she will not be green, at least not entirely. These two will be known as the Emerald Witch and the White Witch, and when the time comes they will be reunited and their destiny revealed"

"Reunited? You mean Elphaba and her sister will be seperated?" the Antelope asked.

"Yes, and they will be reunited in the Other Land" Sibyll confirmed.

"The Other Land?" Karil gasped. She wasn't aware such a place existed, "Why?"

"The White Witch must be sent there to fulfill another part of the prophecy. As for Elphaba, you must send her back to her her parents"

Karil was flabbergasted, "Back there? They sent me away to kill this child, I am not endangering her like that. And how in Oz do you plan to take the other girl away?"

Sibyll smiled, "One of my specialities is memory wiping. As for Elphaba, I was destined to be her Guardian"

X

Frexspar stared at the baby he now held. She was normal, safe for her hair, which was bright green. He looked down at her and whispered, "Maureen". It meant bitter, and that his how he felt.

He heard something and spun around, careful not to awaken his now sleeping wife, and what he saw made his blood boil.

Standing there was the midwife and a maunt who was carrying that abombination.

"I told you get rid of it!" he bellowed, no longer caring if Melena awoke.

The maunt held his gaze.

"You will raise this child, this green child and you shall not harm her. You and your wife shall also forget about the girl named, Maureen"

Frexspar simply stood there, staring blankly into space. Sibyll took this time to switch the two girl's around, so that she was holding Maureen and Frexspar was holding Elphaba.

"Green will change to brown, until her reunion with her sister"

Karil watched in amazement as the baby's hair went from bright green to light brown in a matter of seconds.

"Can you?" she asked.

The soothsayer maunt shook her head, "No, fate does not allow it"

And then Sibyll was gone.

X

This place had an odd name, Hicksville, and this oddly named place was where the White Witch was destined to grow up. Sibyll knocked on the door of the small house, and a young woman with tear streaked cheeks answered the door.

"Y-Yes?"

"I am giving you this child, Maureen, to protect. Listen to what I am about to tell you; this is no ordinary child, she comes from another world, a world called Oz, and it is her destiny to save it. I know that what I say sounds crazy, but when her sister, who shares her destiny arrives, you will know that I speak the truth. You will know her sister when her see her, she is green after all"

And with that, Sibyll handed the baby to the shocked woman and shut the door.

Nancy Johnson stood there wide-eyed, both at what she had been told, and by the mere fact that she was holding a child that was more or less her's. Her husband, Eddy, had just walked back into the foyer.

"What's going on? What happened?" he asked.

Nancy was speechless.

Outside, a man in tathered rags smiled at Sibyll.

"These rags itch"

Orson Heany, like Sibyll was a Guardian. One who had been brought back from the dead in order to protect one of the Chosen, and he was protected one of Oz's two greatest Chosen Ones, the White Witch.

"You'll get used to them. Goodbye Orson" Sibyll said, and then she was gone.

Orson picked up the first thing he saw, a long squeegee, and began scrubbing a car window. He began humming to himself, and then the humming turned into singing.

"Honest living, honest living, honest living..."


	2. 1:Deathday

_The Good Witch head a noise, like wax hitting a stone floor, and cast her eyes down. Except, there was no floor, only darkness. There in the midst of the nothingness was a small puddle of liquid. Green liquid._

_"Your Good...ness"_

_The voice was raspy, struggling to speak. The Good Witch chanced looking up, and her stomach churned. Standing there, emerald flesh boiling and melting off her body, was the Wicked Witch._

_The Good Witch stood there, unable to will her legs to move, trembling under the gaze of a single hazel eye. The other eye was missing, as was the flesh on the right side of the green witch's face. The Wicked Witch reached out with a skinless arm._

_The Good Witch wanted to recoil, but her feet remained grounded, and she braced herself for the cold touch of death, but the coldness never came. The skeleton hand passed through her shoulder._

_A green ghost._

Glinda the Good jolted awake with a scream as the clock struck midnight.

The beautiful, petite blonde looked around her. She was in her room, inside the Palace, located in the Emerald City. Normally the pink walls would have calmed her, but now they mocked her with the life she had lost.

_"Pink goes good with green"_

Reaching down, Glinda pulled open a hidden drawer that was located at the right side of her bed, and pulled out her most prized posession; a black pointed hat.

She stared at the hat with blue eyes that were feeling up with tears, before she let it fall out of her hands and onto the bed. Tears rolled down her cheeks, past her neck, staining the pink nightgown she wore.

"This is my fault" she said. "If it weren't for me, we'd still be together. My beautiful Elphaba"

Elphaba Thropp. All of Oz thought of her as the Wicked Witch of the West. They couldn't have been more wrong. If anyone was wicked it was the two who had branded her as such, the Wizard and Madame Morrible. And Glinda, Glinda was wicked.

Five years ago, to the day, the infamous melting had happened. And every year, Glinda pretended to be happy and revel in the demise of the Wicked Witch, while her heart and soul cried out in anguish.

X

"Happy Deathday to you. Happy Deathday to you. Happy Deathday, dear Elphaba. Happy Deathday to you" the Scarecrow sang.

The green woman looked up dejectedly, and pushed the bangs of her raven hair out of her hazel eyes.

"Oh, hi Fiyero" she said, and went back to staring at the stone ground of Kiamo Ko.

"Elphaba, what's wrong?" he asked, and then realization struck him. "It's Glinda, isn't it?"

Elphaba looked up and asked sadly, "Is it that obvious?"

"I know you love her. You told me, a year after we came here. You love her more than life itself"

Fiyero was brainless, but he wasn't stupid. He could see the obvious when it was plastered in front of him. Elphaba's heart was breaking again, like it did every year on her deathday.

The deathday, an obscure event they had come with together, mocked the Ozians belief that Elphaba was truly dead. Now, Fiyero thought, it seemed like Elphaba truly was dead, her heart at least.

That's not to say that Elphaba was cruel. It was much worse, she was depressed. She never smiled, she never laughed. And despite what Fiyero tried in order to lighten the mood, it only seemed to make things worse.

"You love her, now go to her" he knew that would get a reaction of Elphaba.

He was right. The emerald woman stared at him with shock widened eyes, her mouth slightly agape.

"Fiyero, are you insane?!"

However, Elphaba wished she had heard the Scarecrow correctly. Was he actually giving her the okay to find Glinda and tell her the truth? It all seemed like some sort of surreal dream.

The Scarecrow simply smiled, "Perhaps, but I'll be even crazier if I deny you this"

For the first time in five years, Elphaba Thropp smiled.

X

Glinda had another posession that had originally been Elphaba's, the powerful Grimmerie.

A book of spells so complex, so encrypted, that Glinda had given up on ever decoding it. Besides, unless it could bring the dead back to life or change the past, she didn't want anything to do with it. She would keep it though, because it was Elphaba's wish. She had a promise to keep, and she swore she would never break a promise she had made to Elphaba, except for one. Today, at the celebration, she would tell the truth.

X

Miles above Oz, hidden in the midnight sky, Elphaba flew across the heavens on a broom. Raven hair dancing behind her, wind caressing her face, for the first time in a long time, she felt at peace, returning to her true love, her Glinda.

But the feeling of peace was short lived, now she felt dizzy, all of Oz spinning out of control, she lost focus and then she descended into darkness.


	3. 2:Aequitas

A/N: Sorry, my computer went to hell and I just got it working a week ago, add that to the fact that I'm taking two college classes,I'm in Spanish Club (we're going to Costa Rica...hmm pretty senoritas) and I always have a ton of Physics homework...well,yeah. But no need to fret, updates will be happening a lot more often now! I swear on my Adam Pascal signed playbill.

* * *

Two men stared at each other, both of them Arjiki, adorned with blue diamond tattoos. Both of them badly scarred, burnt on the left side of the face in the same pattern. When one of the men blinked his sky blue eyes, the other did too.

Aequitas studied himself in the body length mirror, he was a strong man, apparently in his mid forties. His body was muscular and covered in whip scars, so many that it was nearly impossible to tell where one ended and the others began. They mingled with the diamond tattoos, creating what almost looked like a strange map, but no was sure the destination.

He closed his eyes and breathed in deeply, concentrating. He muttered a few words in a strange language, and in an instant his total body was ablaze. He gave no scream of pain, the fire did not hurt him, he had been using this spell for years, and he still found it fitted him well. Like a phoenix, burning at death, taking away the pain and disgrace of life, and then reborn from the ashes as a king.

_Knock, knock_

The fire around Aequitas' body extinguished, and he turned to face the door. "Come in"

"Sir, it's the prisoner. She's just woken up" the young man said. His skin was tan and he was short for a man his age-then again,so were most of the people in his tribe-, only five feet and six inches, and his hair and eyes were dark; He was a Yunamata.

"Thank you, Koraz" Aequitas said.

"Yes sir" Koraz said with a bow and left the room.

Aequitas remained motionless for a second, he appeared to be thinking. A moment passed and he had left the room too.

X

Elphaba's eyes snapped opened, or at least she thought they did, it was so dark she wasn't sure if her eyes were open or if she were blind. Her head pounded painfully and her wrists and arms were sore. Her wrists felt as though someone were squeezing them tightly and her arms felt like they were being stretched too much. Elphaba had enough of her wits about her to know that the surface she was on was stone and that she was on her knees. She attempted to move her legs out from under her, but for some reason her legs were too heavy. She attempted to move her arms and heard the rattle of chains. That's when it hit her.

She was somebody's prisoner.

Elphaba's lack of sight and the rush of adrenaline had made her hearing keener, and she could easily hear the echo of approaching footsteps. Suddenly they stopped.

She heard a deep, male voice say "Lumeires" and in an instant the entire place was bathed with light.

Now Elphaba had a clear view of her surroundings. She was in some sort of dungeon, chained to a wall, her feet weighed down with iron spheres. It was a spacious room, not small and claustrophobic like most prison cells were. And her captor, as he appeared to be, was Arjiki.

"Elphaba, how are you?" he asked, approaching her.

"Who are you?" she asked, watching him closely.

"I have went by many names, now I am Aequitas, Bringer of Justice to the Vinkus"

"Why am I here? I've done nothing to you or the Arjiki and I've done nothing to harm the other tribes" Elphaba asked.

"I know you haven't, but I can't allow you to live. You see, whether you believe it or not, you are the Emerald Witch, foretold in the Great Prophecy to defeat me. Apparently I am misguided, but let me tell you, prophecy could not be more wrong about that" Aequitas said.

"Emerald Witch? What are you talking about?" the green woman demanded.

The Arjiki smiled, a smile that was both charming and terrifying all at the same time.

"The Emerald Witch, foretold about in the Great Prophecy the savior of Oz and the banisher of darkness. Of course there's the White Witch also, but it doesn't matter, without even one of you the Prophecy falls short. I'm not entirely sure where the White Witch is, nor do I know exactly who she is, but she might be alive, so I'm going to keep you my prisoner just in case"

"You're insane" the green witch spat.

"Perhaps, but this is for my country, my tribe, my family. Please understand, I'm doing this to restore justice. I won't kill you, no you might prove useful one day, and I promise you'll be well taken care of"

And with that, and another word in that strange language he had spoken earlier, he was gone.

"Hey"

Elphaba turned her head in the direction of voice, and peering through an open window was a Wolf.

"Listen, I know you who are" she said, and jumped down, landing on the stone floor with a thud.

"You do? Good, because now I'm not so sure myself. This whole Emerald Witch thing, is there any truth to it?" Elphaba asked.

"Yes, there is, I have the Great Prophecy with my own eyes, and it speaks of you" the Wolf replied.

"It does?"

"Well, it mentions a green witch, and how many of those have you seen around here?"

Elphaba sighed, she had gone from being the Wicked Witch of the West to being Oz's savior.

"Elphaba my name is Marna, and I want to help you. If there's anything you want me to do, anyone you want me to find I will"

Elphaba didn't have to think about who she wanted Marna to get, and she blurted it out as soon a Marna had finished speaking.

"Glinda"

"Okay, I will find Glinda the Good and bring her here" Marna promised.

"Thank you" Elphaba said.

Marna jumped, and hoisted her self back on the ledge before jumping again and disappearing from Elphaba's sight.


	4. 3:Reunion

A/N: Well I swore on my Adam Pascal signed Rent playbill that there would be more frequent updates, and I failed, so to my readers, Adam Pascal owes you all some playbills. But in other news, I have a new laptop! So without further ado, I give you the third chapter of By The Light Divided.

There was dancing and singing abound in the capital of Oz. Men, women and children of all ages and backgrounds were attending the yearly festivities known as Melting Day. By the time the children of Oz were old enough they were told the story of the Wicked Witch of the West's reign of terror and her eventual demise by the savior girl Dorothy. Booths selling various knick-knacks and entertainment littered the city.

"Look, it's Glinda!" a woman shouted, just as every year and just the same as the years before, the crowd's gazes turned to the direction she was pointing.

The announcement of Glinda the Good had been part of the Melting Day celebration every since it's inception. The Good Witch floated down upon her bubble, into the vision of the Ozians and that's when the murmurs started. This year the Good Witch wasn't dressed in her normal festivity garb of sparkling gowns and shimmering jewelery, but instead she was clad in a black frock. Her eyes were red and there were dark circles beneath them, as though she had been crying and losing sleep for quite some time and her hair was in disarray.

"My fellow Ozians, I have an announcement to ma-"

Nobody in the crowd had even saw the beast coming, the large wolf must have snuck passed them and now it was carrying off Glinda. And for some reason nobody dared to chase after it.

X

Elphaba took a deep breath, attempting to sort out her thoughts. Was what Marna and Aequitas spoke of true? Was she really the savior of Oz? And Aequitas, was there any way she could reason with him? She actually felt a bit sorry for the man, she knew of the slave trade and the horror the Vinkus tribes had endured at the hands of traders and vicious owners, and she knew how it felt to be looked down upon. So in a way, she could see why Aequitas would go to these extremes, but it didn't excuse the fact that her arms and legs were in agony at the moment. Forgetting she was chained, she attempted to stretch her arms and managed.

"_He must have unchained me"_ she thought with slight relief, before remembering she was confined in a cell.

She stood up, grabbing the wall for support and looked around. For being a prison cell, it wasn't half bad. It was spacious and it had an actual bed instead of the typical prison cot, there was a full fledged bathroom area that was obscured from view, and the walls were quite clean as though they had been recently washed.

Elphaba shook her head, now was not the time to focus on interior design. That was something Glinda would probably do. Glinda…

X

"I demand to know who you are, and where you're taking me!" Glinda screeched.

"My name is Marna" the She Wolf replied, "And I'm taking you to Elphaba"

The mere mention of her lover's name sent Glinda into a catatonic stupor and all she could do was whisper "Elphaba"

"Yes, Elphaba, she's being held prisoner and for some reason she wants to see you. Are you two friends?"

"Depends on what you mean by friends" the Good Witch sighed.

Had she heard the Wolf right? Was her Elphaba really alive and waiting for her…and being held prisoner?!

"Did you say she's being held prisoner? By who? And is this a joke? How is Elphaba alive?" Glinda started firing off questions.

"By a man who calls himself Aequitas, he refers to himself as the Bringer of Justice to the Vinkus, and I swear on the life of my first born pup this is no joke. As to how your lover is alive…you'll have to ask her" Marna halted, "You see that window up there?" she pointed upwards with her muzzle.

Glinda looked up, and sure enough there was an open window right in the side of the cliff.

"Through that window, Elphaba is waiting for you. If you climb on my back, you should be able to jump up and hoist yourself onto the ledge" Marna explained.

Glinda nodded to show she understood and shakily stood upon the Wolf's strong back. She took a deep breath and jumped, grabbing onto the ledge of the window. Sensing that the Good Witch requiring further assistance, Marna used her head to push against Glinda's bottom and give her a boost. That extra boost was all Glinda needed.

X

Elphaba could hear Marna, and she wanted to call out to Glinda, to make sure she was there, but she stopped herself for fear that Aequitas would hear her. She had been watching and when she saw her lover's hands, she wasted no time rushing over to the window.

"Glinda!" she whispered "Slide off and I'll catch you"

Glinda made no indication that she had heard Elphaba other than actually following her advice. She slid off the window ledge and into Elphaba's arms.

"Glinda, I know I have a few things to-"the green woman was cut short by a pair of lips upon her own.

She fell into the kiss, whimpering as the ache between her legs grew. Glinda's hand had been entangled in her raven locks, but was now moving between her legs.

"Glinda, please" she moaned, no longer caring about being heard.

Glinda removed her hand from beneath Elphaba's frock and slapped her across the face with it.

"You better fucking tell me what the hell is going here" she demanded, tears streaming down her face.

Elphaba rubbed her sore cheek, "Glinda, I'm sorry, but I had to"

"You had to? You had to?" the blonde shrieked, "Don't give me that bullshit Elphaba Thropp!"

"Glinda listen to me, please. The Ozians hated me, if word got out that I was your friend, much less your lover they would have gone after you too, and I couldn't allow it. Faking my death was the only thing I could do" Elphaba said, "I wanted to tell you but Fiyero thought it was too dangerous"

"And how is Fiyero?" Glinda questioned, in a tone that sounded like if Fiyero was okay, he wouldn't be soon.

"Remember the Scarecrow traveling with Dorothy?" the emerald woman asked.

"What does that have to do with…sweet Oz" realization hit Glinda like bricks, "So Fiyero and the Brainless Scarecrow…"

"Are one and the same, yeah" Elphaba confirmed.

Glinda threw her arms around Elphaba and buried her face in her lover's shoulder, sobbing, "How could you leave me? I've been lost without you"

"I've been lost without you too, my love"

"What a touching reunion. Lumiere" suddenly the entire room was flooded with light.

"Glinda the Good, Oz's society dame, allow me introduce myself. I am Aequitas"

Glinda couldn't help but stare at the currently shirtless Arjiki, it wasn't his body though, but the scars that covered it.

"Oh these? This is what you're people did to me! To all of the Vinkusuns!" he roared.

"Glinda did nothing" Elphaba growled, clutching onto her lover.

"You're right…she did nothing. I'm keeping you alive Emerald Witch, but you're lover…she deserves death" Aequitas hissed. And as before, he vanished without a trace.

"Emerald Witch, Elphie what is he talking about?" Glinda asked, trembling in her lover's arms.

"A prophecy, it says I'm the savior of Oz" she sighed. "Glinda I won't lose you again, not now or ever"

"What are we going to do?" as far as Glinda could tell there would be no escape.

"There's a spell, but I don't know where it will take us or even if it will work. The Grimmerie just said it was supposed to take the caster to their destiny. But as far as I can tell, it only works on one person, but maybe if you say it with me…"

Glinda nodded in understanding.

Elphaba closed her eyes, and together her and Glinda whispered, "Vindico ut mihi meus fatum"

They felt as thought they were being pulled through a vacuum and then suddenly it stopped.

"Glinda, I don't think we're in Oz anymore…" Elphaba sighed, looking around in shock.

A/N: For anybody who cares, I have a playlist up for this story on my profile. It only contains the songs up to this chapter, in order to avoid any spoilers.


	5. 4:Crazy

"Glinda, its freezing, come on" Elphaba urged, pulling her open mouthed lover into a brightly lit building with the words "Catstratch Club" flashing above it. An amalgamation of sounds and sights greeted the two women, a few of which made Elphaba blush.

Glinda giggled, "I'm still mad at you for lying to me all these years…but maybe I'll dance like that for you"

That made Elphaba blush like she'd never blushed before.

The green woman figured she should be thankful for the loud music, the whistling men (and a few women) and the scantily clad dancers; nobody seemed to notice the oddly dressed couple or Elphaba's green skin, but maybe they just didn't care.

The two women walked through the tables, looking for a place to sit and think, but it seemed that almost every table was occupied.

"Hey! You can sit with us, we won't bite" the owner of the voice was a mocha skinned male, "The name's Collins" he pulled two chairs from an empty table.

"Hi, I'm Glinda and this is Elphaba" the blonde said, wrapping her arm around her lover.

"Weird names…I love them" the speaker was a fair skinned woman, who (and this surprised both women) looked just like Elphaba, well except for the fact that she wasn't green skinned, and her hair was wavy and brown instead of black and straight, but their faces, eyes and body build was exactly the same. It was like looking into a slightly distorted mirror for both women, and they felt something tugging deep inside of them "I'm Maureen" the woman said, after she got over the shock. "And this sexy as hell woman is my Joanne" and Maureen placed a quick kiss on the mocha skinned woman she was sitting atop.

"The pale guy with the camera is Mark" Maureen pointed to a beautiful dancer, "That's Mimi, the guy staring at her is her boyfriend Roger, and he (she gestured to a chocolate skinned man) is Benny"

"It's nice to meet you all" Elphaba said.

"Is that…are you…green?" Mark asked, taking off his glasses and wiping them on his scarf.

Elphaba sighed, she'd known this was coming, "I am"

"You're seriously green? I thought it was just paint or something" Maureen said.

"Please, she's a little sensitive about it" Glinda said, noticing her lover was becoming agitated by the questions.

"Sorry" Maureen smiled, and then engaged her girlfriend in a deep kiss.

"Hey Maureen, I think you need to have a talk with your parents, I think this girl might be your sister" Roger said, Maureen hadn't been the only one who had noticed how similar she and Elphaba looked.

Maureen laughed, but a little uneasily because somewhere in her mind she thought Roger might be right, that feeling she had felt when she saw Elphaba was strange, like seeing an old friend you hadn't run into in years.

"_Get a hold of yourself Johnson, she looks like you, big deal, it's just a coincidence" _she told herself, but she wasn't so sure.

Elphaba was thinking the same thing.

"Honeybear, we need to go, I have a case tomorrow remember?" Joanne said, pecking Maureen's lips.

"Aw, okay" Maureen whined, "Do you two have a place to stay?" she asked Elphaba and Glinda.

Neither woman had thought about that, "No, but we'd hate to bother you two" Elphaba said, "I mean we just met"

"We don't mind, right Pookie?" Maureen asked.

"Of course not, I'm sure we can find somewhere for you two to crash at our place" Joanne replied, a little perplexed by her girlfriend's hospitality.

"You wanna borrow some of my clothes?" Maureen asked Elphaba.

"Yes, thank you" Elphaba said, while Glinda nodded.

Elphaba was looking at things from a logical point of view; she couldn't do much about her skin, but at least she could be dressed like she belonged here. Glinda, on the other hand, was looking at the situation from an 'I bet she'd look sexy in those pants' point of view.

"Hey Meems" Maureen said, greeting the dancer who had just gotten off the stage, "This is Elphaba and Glinda, and that's not paint on Elphaba"

Elphaba was grateful to Maureen for telling Mimi that.

"Hey" Mimi greeted, she also wanted to add 'holy shit Maureen, this girl might be your twin sister' but she refrained from doing so.

X

"I hope the couch is okay, we don't usually have long term guests" Joanne said apologetically.

"Its okay, Joanne, really" Glinda said.

"We're the ones who should be apologizing, we're sorry for intruding" Elphaba said.

Maureen shrugged "Well, I figured you two might be low on money, Mark and Roger's place is full and I still don't trust that yuppie"

"Baby" Joanne gently reprimanded, "He divorced Allison, he sold Mark and Roger the loft for a hundred dollars and he furnished the money for three shelters, what else can the man do to prove that he's changed?"

"Save my life" Maureen joked. "Night you two"

"Goodnight" Glinda said, as Maureen and Joanne headed toward their room.

"So, Elphaba, care to explain how you're still alive"

The green woman flinched, she had forgotten she still needed to explain everything to Glinda, "Okay, I'm not allergic to water, it was just a trick. After me and Fiyero went into the mountains, I told him I loved you, and he accepted it"

"Don't ever lie to me again Elphaba" she tore open her frock, revealing a pair of full, creamy breasts. "Fuck me, baby"

Elphaba stared at her lover; half horny and half flabbergasted that Glinda would suggest doing such a thing in somebody else's home. "I- but we're-"

A loud moan came from down the hall, and Glinda smiled seductively, "You were saying?"

"_I can't believe I'm actually doing this"_ Elphaba thought, before taking a stiff nipple into her mouth

X

Maureen and Joanne lay in each other's arms, basking in the afterglow of their lovemaking.

"Joanne?"

"Yes, Honeybear?" Joanne rubbed her lover's arm.

"When I saw Elphaba, I felt, I don't know, weird I guess, but not in a bad way, just weird" the drama queen said.

"I'm sure it's nothing, Maureen" the lawyer said.

"Yeah, you're right" but Maureen had doubts.

"_Quit fucking worrying about it"_ she scolded herself, and drifted off into an uneasy sleep.


	6. 5:When Destiny Knocks Down Your Door

A/N: I am glad to say that my writer's block seems to be over…let's hope I haven't jinxed myself by saying that. Also, this story will move a bit faster than Black Hole Sun, and as I'm sure you may have noticed, be darker and more mature.

Aequitas smiled softly to himself, most would consider the escape of the Emerald Witch a failure on their part, but to Aequitas it was a blessing in disguise. He had heard every word of the Emerald Witch's conversation, and she had given him an idea. After all, it was her destiny to find the White Witch; she could lead him to both of them. There wasn't anything to get ready, no loose ends to tie up. Aequitas had a brilliant group of high ranking soldiers under his command; they would take care of things. Thinking things over in his head, the Arjiki figured there was one thing he needed to do before he began his search.

"Reverto hic" as soon as the words left the diamond skinned sorcerer's mouth, a circle of golden light surrounded his feet. All he had to do was repeat those words, and he'd return to the very place he was standing, with, he swore to himself, the Emerald and White Witches.

"Vindicto ut mihi meus fatum" he repeated the very spell the Emerald Witch had used to escape him.

For the short moment he was traveling through time and space, his eyes were closed, and when the strange sensations stopped he opened them. He was shocked by these unfamiliar surroundings, but the look on his face didn't betray that. It took only a moment before Aequitas figured his blue diamond tattoos would go relatively unnoticed, but it was quite cold, and his scars might draw some attention.

Oscar Heaney, known to the people of the city as Squeegee Man, had to clench the handle of the squeegee he held in order to keep from fainting in shock. That man, no, not here. Inwardly, he cursed whatever deity had brought him back as a Guardian. Couldn't he (or she) have just let him rest in peace? Sibyll Keslar might have taken her resurrection in stride, seen it as a blessing, but Oscar saw it as a curse. Perhaps it was punishment for being the self absorbed son of a Gillikenese plantation owner, or maybe for drinking himself to death. Damn, he could use a drink right now, not that it would do any good. He couldn't even get buzzed. Damn cosmic laws.

X

Elphaba jolted upright, sucking in large gasps of breath. There had been no nightmare, only a sudden sense of foreboding that made her stomach twist and her heart thud madly in her throat. She could see that outside, everything was bathed in the pinkish glow of sunrise.

"Are you okay?" a concerned voice asked.

"Joanne, I'm sorry. I'm fine, it's nothing" Elphaba hated lying to Joanne, even if she hadn't known her for more than several hours.

"Bad dream?" the lawyer inquired.

"You could say that" the green woman sighed.

"Would you like some coffee?" Joanne smiled softly.

"Yes, please, thank you". Coffee did sound good; perhaps it would ease Elphaba's raging nerves. Careful not to wake her deeply sleeping lover, she got up and followed Joanne into the kitchen area.

"Last night, you said you had a case to work on, are you a lawyer?" Elphaba asked, sitting down at the table.

"Yeah" Joanne said, opening the case file that was sitting on top of the table. "Its hard work, but it's rewarding. I just wish I had more time off"

X

_It was dark, nothing could be seen, but things could be heard, voices echoing as if in a tunnel._

"_I told you to get rid of it!" the voice was male and full of anger and disgust._

"_You will raise this child and you will not harm her, and you shall forget about the other child" this time the voice belong to a woman and was full of authority._

_The voices began to grow fainter._

"_Green hair turn brown until she is reunited with her-"_

_The woman's voice suddenly picked up again, grew to nearly deafening as she says she final word…_

"_Sister"_

Maureen's eyes flew open, and she gulped down several sporadic breaths as she tried to ease her erratic heartbeat. Her clothes were damp with sweat and she could taste the saltiness of it as the moisture on her forehead flowed down her face and onto her lips. She rolled over and glanced at the clock; 6:12 A.M in bright, blocky red numbers. The drama queen attempted to fall back asleep, but every time she closed her eyes the voices from her dream would start haunting her again.

Not that the dream itself was haunting, but it was the nature of it that scared Maureen the most, like it was a distant, forgotten memory that had suddenly been dug up.

Finally giving up on going back to bed, Maureen arose. She sat on the edge of the bed for a moment.

Oscar followed Aequitas at a distance, watching his every move, listening to every word he said. He desperately wanted to stop the Arjiki, but he knew that even if he was a match for Aequitas, he was forbidden to interfere unless it was to protect his charge. And apparently that was only if she was in extreme danger. Right now Aequitas was conversing with a vendor.

"Dear, I gave my shirt to a gentleman earlier and the cold is starting to get to me. May I look?"

The Coat Lady shrugged, "Whatever." Money was money.

"Forgive me, I seem to have no money, but perhaps this will compensate?" Aequitas pulled out a silver chain from his pocket, from which swung a resting dragon of emerald.

The vendor stared at the object for a moment before saying, "Yeah sure" she could get plenty of money off of this from some moron buying it as a last minute Christmas gift for their sweetheart.

Aequitas selected a gray sweatshirt and quickly put it on, smiled politely at the vendor, "Thank you"

Oscar kept his eyes on the blue diamonded man, a loose knot of fear in the pit of his stomach, but as he watched Aequitas that loose knot tightened into terror. He knew where the sorcerer was headed, and whether he liked being a Guardian or not, he still had duties, and even though he might have considered duty a waste of time in his previous life, he'd be damned if he'd let his charge get hurt.

X

Aequitas knew he was being followed, but he didn't care, he could take of the man later, after he had the Emerald and White Witch. He was being pulled, it seemed, to a certain location, and he knew that was where he would find the two witches. The closer he got, it seemed, the stronger the tug, now it was as if he was being dragged forcibly by some force. Suddenly the tugged stopped and Aequitas knew this was where _they_ were, right through the very door he stood in front of.

"Exploderin" he said, and the door erupted in to dust.

X

Glinda had been awake for around fifteen when she heard and saw the blast, she screamed as Aequitas advanced toward her and grabbed her by her arm, lifting her high in the air.

"Sweet Oz" Elphaba said, her gut twisting in dread. Joanne had a look of horror upon her face

"Adeo" he hissed, and suddenly Joanne was in the same position as Glinda.

That was when Maureen burst into the room.

"What's going on?" she demanded, her tone drowning in fear and shock.

"I'll explain later, Maureen" Elphaba said through clenched teeth. "Incendera!" she yelled and a blast of fire shot towards Aequitas, hitting him square in the stomach.

But it didn't even phase him. "Ictus!"

Elphaba fell to the ground, her mouth twisting in agony.

And that was when Oscar rushed in and yelled at Maureen, "Cruciatus, Maureen, just fucking say it! Now!"

Later in her life Maureen would credit what she did next was instinct, but right now it seemed that she did it out of desperation.

"Cruciatus!" she yelled.

She watched in both horror and amazement as Aequitas suddenly dropped Maureen and Joanne and fell to the ground like Elphaba did.

"Reverto hic" he managed to croak out through his immense anguish, and in a flash of light he was gone.

"Maureen, there are some things you need to know" Oscar said.

"Maureen your hair…" Elphaba said.

Maureen grabbed a fistful of hair and her eyes widened in shock. No longer was her hair brown, instead the hair she was staring at was bright green.


	7. 6:Explanations

Everyone was still in shock, and now sitting at the kitchen table, that is, after Orson had magically repaired the destroyed door, it was scorched, but at least it was actually there. Glinda was clutching her heart, Joanne was cracking her knuckles, Maureen was grabbing at her hair and Elphaba was staring blankly at the wall.

"Maureen," Oscar began, unsure of what to say exactly.

Maureen looked at Oscar, and her eyes made his heart clench in sympathy; they were the eyes of a confused, frightened child.

"Elphaba, you and Maureen both need to hear this," the Guardian began, "Maureen, it's time you learn who you really are," he gestured toward Elphaba, who was still focused on the wall, "meet your sister". That made the verdant woman's focus shift to Maureen.

"Sister?" she whispered.

Glinda and Joanne were staring at their respective lovers in absolute shock, trying to decide if there was anything they could say or do.

"Who are you?" Maureen asked, shakily.

"My name is Orson Heaney, and I'm your Guardian Maureen. You're a witch"

"What?" confusion was etched across her face.

"I'll explain everything I can later; right now I need you to call your friends, even Benny. They need to hear this as well, their destinies are intertwined with yours"

"Maureen, baby, are you okay?" Joanne's eyes were full of concern.

Maureen nodded, "Hand me the phone"

Joanne stroked Maureen's cheek, and obliged.

Maureen shakily dialed the loft's number, and a moment later said, "Mark, Roger, get over here. Mimi, Collins, if you're there, you too, if not, call them, and call Benny too" her words were rushed and trembling. She hung up and set the phone on the table.

"Who was that man?" Joanne asked, "Those diamond tattoos?"

"He calls himself Aequitas, and he's an Arjiki," Elphaba said.

"Arjiki?" Maureen was growing more confused by the second.

"One of the tribes of the Vinkus in western Oz" Orson answered, "I'll explain more when everyone gets here"

Vinkus. Oz. It seemed the more Maureen was told, the less she knew.

X

Aequitas roared in anger, and threw a wine glass against the stone wall. It shattered loudly.

"Wznm wg," (Damn it) he swore to himself in Arjikian.

"Hri, rh vevibgsrmt zoitsg?" (Sir, is everything alright?)

"Rg droo yv. Glmrtsg dv yvtrm lfi nzxs lm Gillikin, Koraz" (It will be. Tonight we begin our march on Gillikin, Koraz) Aequitas answered, his dark eyes flashing.

The Yunamata shifted on his feet, "Hri, ziv div xzkzyov lu vcvxfgrmt tfxs zm zggzxp?" (Sir, are we capable of mounting such an attack?)

Aequitas smiled, almost reassuringly. "Nb xsrpw, wl mlg dlirb" (My child, do not worry)

X

Roger, Mark, Mimi and Collins were staring at the phone. None of them had ever heard Maureen sound that way before, she sounded nervous and scared, like a child.

"It must be something real bad if she wants Benny to be there" Collins said.

Meanwhile, Mark had called Benny; the phone rang a few times before the phone on the other line was picked up, the click heard by everyone in the loft.

"Benny, its Mark"

"Mark, what's going on?" the surprise in the former landlord's voice was evident.

"Maureen just called, she wants us to meet her at her apartment, even you" the filmmaker answered.

There was a pause, and Mark could imagine Benny's eyebrows knitting in confusion.

"Me?" the image in Mark's head was reaffirmed.

"Yeah, she sounded really upset. Kind of scared actually" Roger said.

Benny sighed and the rush of air sounded staticy through the phone, "Alright. Hey, how about I come pick you guys up? We can get there faster that way"

"Sure, see ya"

"You too, guys" another click was heard as Benny hung up.

X

"Elphaba, what do you know?" Joanne asked, "You and Glinda have been keeping something from us, so spill" the lawyer's gaze was intent.

"Okay. The short, extremely abridged version is this; I'm a witch, me and Glinda are from a land called Oz, and I'm at the center of a prophecy, which is why Aequitas is so eager to capture me. Apparently, I'm the only one who can stop him and save Oz" Elphaba sighed.

"Actually, you're not the only one" Oscar said.

"What do you mean?" Glinda asked, "Elphie isn't the only one that can save Oz?"

"Well," the Guardian continued, "She can't save Oz alone, she'll need the White Witch. She'll need you, Maureen"

Maureen was about to say something when she heard a car pull up.

"_They're here" _she thought, and got up and ran to the door.

She pulled it open, and gestured for everybody to come inside.

"You called us because you screwed up a hair dying?" Mimi asked, noticing Maureen's emerald locks.

"That'll be explained" and then she added to herself, _"I hope"_

Mark, with his knack for noticing things when others didn't, spotted the scorch marks on the door before anyone else did.

"What the hell happened?" he asked.

The rest of the group had noticed the scorch marks as well, and were echoing Mark's question with their eyes.

"Just come on" Maureen sighed, and the group followed her into the kitchen.

"Squeegee Man?" Roger asked, his eyes, as well as those of the others who had just arrived, focused on the homeless man.

"The name's Orson Heaney, and I'm more than just a window washer" he stated, "Now, Elphaba and Maureen especially need to here this, but so do all of you. I think it would be best if Elphaba explained a little of what's going on"

After a few moments of deep breathing, Elphaba finally calmed her nerves down enough to explain what had happened earlier that day.

A few minutes later, Mimi had her hands raised in front of her. "Hold on. Let me get this straight; some tattooed freak blew the door open, attacked all of you, then Squeegee Man showed up, and there was a magic fight? And Elphaba and Maureen are twin sisters? And this man, Aequitas wants to capture Elphaba because she's at the center of some prophecy, and apparently there's another world called Oz?"

"That pretty much sums it up, yes" Elphaba said.

Collins chuckled, "This is a joke, right?"

"No, it's not"

Everybody's gaze shifted to Joanne, none of them had ever heard the lawyer sound so serious. And that was saying something.

"It's not a joke, I swear" Maureen said. "I can't explain what happened, but it did. And in a way, even if nothing else makes since, I don't doubt that me and Elphaba are sisters. When I first met her, it was like I was seeing an old friend again, like we had some sort of deep connection"

"Well, that does explain why the two of you look alike" Roger said, slowly accepting what he was being told.

"Okay, Maureen has a long lost…green, twin sister. That still doesn't mean there's any truth to the rest of their story" Benny said, but there was no hiding that he too was beginning to believe.

"If they show you that they can use magic, will you believe everything?" Glinda asked.

"Yes, we will" Mark said, speaking on behalf of him and the other four.

"Elphaba, you first, Maureen is still new to this" Orson said.

Elphaba nodded, and cupped her hands in front of her, and her brows knitted in concentration. "Flamma"

Everyone was staring at Elphaba, and what she now held in her hands; there was a small flame flickering, cradled in her cupped hands.

"Maureen, try now" Orson said, nodding at his charge.

Maureen cupped her hands in front of her as her sister had done, "Flamma" she said, the word lost in the erratic beating of her heart.

And then, just like Elphaba, a small flame came to life in her hands. Maureen's flame was smaller than the green woman's and it wasn't flickering as wildly. Maureen gasped, her mind reeling at what she had just done, but at the same time she felt powerful, she felt good.

"Okay. They weren't joking about the magic" Mark said, "But what do you have to do with all of this?" he pointed at Orson.

"I'm Maureen's Guardian" he explained, "Like Glinda, Elphaba and Maureen, I come from the land of Oz. I am a being of magic, but I am not a wizard or a sorcerer, nor was I one during my time of living"

"You mean you're…dead?" Roger asked, the wheels in his head turning.

"I was, that's the nature of Guardians. You see, when we die, our souls are judged for either Paradise or Hell, or in rare cases resurrection. Those chosen for resurrection usually die in tragic, untimely deaths, and we often don't have the best character" he sighed, "I guess the powers that be decided some people need an extra chance. Anyways, Guardians are brought back to fulfill one duty, they are to watch over those gifted with natural magic, and make sure they don't use their powers for evil or personal gain"

"Natural magic, what's that?" Elphaba asked.

"There are two types of magic; natural and learned. Just about anybody from Oz can learn magic, but there have only been ten in history that were gifted with natural magic in the history of Oz" the Guardian said, "The power of a natural witch or wizard is astounding, tenfold that of a learned magic user. You and your sister are much more powerful, you're magical power is one hundredfold that of any other natural magic user that has ever lived"

"So, they can just walk over this Aequitas guy, right?" Benny asked.

"Not exactly. While Aequitas is not naturally as powerful as the two Great Witches, he has transformed himself using dark magic, as things stand now, he's more powerful that either one of them individually. Only together can Elphaba and Maureen defeat him" Oscar explained.

"I'm assuming Aequitas is a natural wizard" Collins said.

"You've assumed correctly, Collins" the Guardian affirmed.

"And I'm guessing that his Guardian failed" the professor continued.

Oscar sighed, "The only one who ever did"

Elphaba sighed, "But he's not using his powers for personal gain. He's using them to avenge his people. The tribes of the Vinkus have been oppressed for years, even before the Wizard's reign"

"He seeks revenge, not justice as he claims. The path he has put himself, and his followers on will only lead the Vinkus tribes into destruction" Orson said, trying to make Elphaba understand what she had to do. "War is not the path to justice, peace and forgiveness are"

Elphaba eyes were full of fire, "How is killing him an act of forgiveness?"

"Elphaba, after what he did, after he attacked you and tried to kill me and Glinda, how can-?" Joanne's words were cut off.

"How, I'll tell you how. None of you saw it. I saw Vinkus children being marched through Quadling country on chains, on the way to be auctioned off like beasts of burden" the green woman's fists were clenched tightly.

"People like me, Benny and Collins have been oppressed for centuries too. Our ancestors were enslaved, just like the Vinkus tribes. I'm not playing the race card, but I know about struggle. I know what it's like to be looked down on just because of the color of your skin or your heritage, to be seen as something subhuman"

That last part hit home for Elphaba, and she was at a loss for words.

"Elphaba, we've all been the victim and one time or another, some more than others. But, defeating Aequitas will actually be an act of mercy" Oscar said, his eyes full of sorrow.

"What do you mean?" Maureen asked, almost afraid of the answer.

"The darkness he exposed himself to has been eating away at him, before long it will devour him completely, and he'll be nothing more than a tool for the most vile creatures. Then, his campaign will mean nothing. I have seen these creatures, they come straight from Hell. They feed on fear and death, and they don't discriminate"

"Oscar" Elphaba said, after a long moment of silence, "Who was my Guardian?"

"Her name was Sibyll Keslar, and other than being a Guardian she was also the most powerful prophet of the age, she's the one that predicted the coming of the Great Witches. She's also the one that brought Maureen here"

"Why did I never see her?" the green woman demanded.

"Usually Guardians don't reveal themselves to their charges unless they absolutely must. They stay on the sidelines, and only intervene when things get out of hand" the Guardian explained.

"And being hunted by most of Oz isn't cause for intervention?" she shot back.

"You could have taken care of things on your own" Oscar retorted.

"A little help would have been nice" the verdant woman was visibly frustrated now.

"I hate to butt into this debate, but what exactly do you mean by "hunted"?" Joanne asked.

Elphaba sighed, "I guess it's time I explain my side of the story"

The green witch told them everything. About growing up in Munchkinland, about how her mother had died giving birth to her younger sister, Nessa, leaving Elphaba with a father who hated her and a sister who was ashamed of her. She explained about the nature of Animals and their plight at the hands of the Wizard. She spoke of how the Wizard and Madame Morrible branded her the Wicked Witch of the West, and started a nationwide witch hunt to destroy her. She told them about Dorothy coming to Oz and killing her sister, her pursuit of the young girl, and the melting trick that had most of Oz thinking she was dead. She told them just about everything.

"You said Sibyll brought me here. Did my parents know about any of this?" Maureen asked.

"They were given the brief details by Sibyll, yes. You should talk to them before we go" Oscar said.

"We? You mean you, Maureen, Elphaba and Glinda?" Joanne asked, her heart clenching.

"No, I mean we. We're all going to Oz. Like I said earlier; your destinies are intertwined with Elphaba and Maureen's. I'm not exactly sure how, but you all play a big part in the prophecy. The Council of Fifteen, was what Sibyll called it"

"But there's only six of us, seven if you count Glinda" Roger said.

"Yes, according to the prophecy seven of the other nine are from Oz"

"So the other two are from…here?" Mimi asked.

"Yes, but I don't know who they could be"

"Come on, we're going to see my parents" Maureen said, getting out of her chair.

"Okay, but first, would it be okay if I washed up? And do any of you have any clothes I can borrow?"

X

Forty-five minutes later, the group was in Benny's SUV on the way to Hicksville. Oscar was nearly unrecognizable; he had trimmed and shaved his straggly beard (although he was still far from being baby smooth), he had spent what felt like hours scrubbing the dirt and grease from his hair and body, and he now sported a plain white shirt and a pair of jeans Benny had been gracious enough to donate.

"There, that house" Maureen said, pointing to a small, quaint looking home, and Benny pulled the vehicle into the driveway.

Maureen jumped out, and dashed to the door. She knocked on it furiously.

"I'm coming, I'm coming" she heard her mom say.

The door opened to reveal a beautiful middle-aged woman, "Maureen, sweetie…" her words trailed off when she saw Elphaba, who was now standing behind her daughter.

"Come in, I have to tell you something" Nancy said, gesturing for the entire group to enter.

Eddie Johnson was sitting on the couch, reading the paper when the group came in. "Hey there" he caught sight of Elphaba and looked at his wife, "She was serious, wasn't she?"

A few minutes later the group was in the Johnson's living room, and Nancy was trying to think of a good place to start.

Finally the older woman sighed, "All my life I wanted to be a mother, and after years of your father and I failing to conceive, I was blessed with a son. But he died soon after he was born, I was devastated. And then, this strange woman comes to our house, and offers me a child to take care of, she said that little girl would save Oz, and that she had a green sister" she smiled at her daughter, "I had hoped she was crazy. But I see I was wrong"

"So is it true, Joanne? Is my daughter a witch from another world?" Eddie asked, knowing his daughter's girlfriend would be honest with him.

"Yes, she is" the lawyer answered.

Oscar let out a pained gasp, "Make your goodbyes quick. We have to get to Oz"

"Please, tell everyone what we're doing, even if they don't believe you" Benny said.

"We will, I promise" Eddie said.

"How exactly do we get to Oz?" Mimi asked. "Do we snap our finger three times?"

Oscar turned to Elphaba, "The spell you cast to escape Aequitas was called the Spell of Destiny. If you and Maureen cast it now it will take all of us to Oz"

Elphaba began chanting, and Maureen followed suit. "Mihi ut meus fatum".

The group of nine felt like they were being tossed about in a hurricane, and then suddenly it stopped.

"What in the name of Lurline?" Oscar gasped.


	8. 7:Return to Oz

The sight the group held before them was nothing like what they had expected, they had figured there would be signs of destruction, but that wasn't the case. What lie before them was a savannah of lush grass, and the trees, though sparse, were tall and full of vegetation.

"I expected something a lot worse than this" Collins said, voicing everybody's thoughts.

Everybody's thoughts except Orson's that is, "This is exactly what's to be expected from Aequitas. He's a Vinkun nationalist, he would never harm his own land unless absolutely necessary. You can be sure he didn't extend the same courtesy to the other provinces of Oz"

"Umalsiaw ua afuk!" (Surrender or die!)

Although Elphaba didn't know the exact words being shouted, she knew there were several men, and she knew enough about Vinkun languages to identify the voice's tribal origins.

"Scrow. They're Scrow warriors. Some of the fiercest fighters in Oz"

"Oh, that's just great. Where are they?" Maureen asked, shaking like crazy.

"In the-" Elphaba didn't have time to answer Maureen's question before a Scrow warrior answered it, by jumping out of the tree closest to them.

The Scrows were not as dark as the chocolate skinned Arjiki, but they were darker than the tan Yunamata. Mocha would be the best word to describe the coffee-like tone of their skin. In comparison to the Arjiki they were shorter, but not as short as the Yunamata, and they were more muscular than either, but not grossly so.

One of them, a man with a scar across his right cheeked, lifted his hand and the sunlight gleamed off of his large bladed boomerang.

Orson gulped, that thing looked powerful enough to slice someone's head off. Nobody needed to say anything for the Guardian to know they had the same concern.

"Elphaba, I know you have mixed feeling about using force against the Vinkuns, but unless you want all of Oz to suffer, you're going to have to make some hard choices"

Elphaba clenched her fist; part of her told her that there had to be another way, her other, more rational part, told her that there was no other way.

"Levitas" she said, and a stream of electricity shot from her hand. She willed the stream to the scarred Scrow. There was no cry of pain, hardly anytime passed at all, before he dropped to the ground.

At the sight of their fallen comrade, the three other Scrows gave a loud cry and raised their bladed boomerangs, and taking aim at Elphaba, Maureen and Orson, threw their weapons.

The three of them would have surely had their heads cut clean off if it weren't for the fact that a small hatchet had come flying through the air from the group's left, cutting the three boomerangs clean in half, and then finally coming to rest in the tree the scarred Scrow had jumped out of.

Everyone's gaze turned to the left, and Elphaba and Glinda couldn't help but gasp with shock. Standing there was a young man of short stature, a Munchkin, with dark brown hair, dressed in armor made of leather and metal.

"Boq" the green witch said, shocked for more reasons than one, "You're normal again. How?"

"Not too sure, just happened. But this no time to talk. Fiyero!" his tone was desperate. "Where the hell-"

There was the loud blast of a gunshot, and then one of the Scrow warriors dropped to the ground, the wound in his head leaking copious amounts of blood, and his brains exposed.

Maureen took one look at the sight, and was nearly sick.

"I feel more horrible every time I do such a thing" a voice beside her said.

The White Witch looked to her left to see a handsome young man, with sandy blonde hair, dressed in the same armor that Boq was.

Elphaba, recognizing the voice, had turned in its direction. "Fiyero, you're-"

"Normal? Sort of" the young man answered. He then turned his focus to the two remaining Scrow. "Ogsiwm izilubmahsam uney, an idaha isis azewatutah auukuk" (End your attacks, and we promise we will not kill you)

The taller of the two was the one who spoke, "Awas. Isis abot izilubmahsam yetu. Lakini isis anatukuk anet, ignar osu" (Alright. We will relent our attacks. But we will meet again, pale face) and with that, the two Scrow ran into the east.

After placing his gun into the holder on his back, Fiyero turned to the group. He studied them, and his jaw dropped when he got a closer look at Maureen.

"You're her, Elphaba's sister, the White Witch"

"Yeah, that's me" the green-haired woman said, "I guess"

Meanwhile, Boq was feverently apologizing to Elphaba.

"Elphaba, I am so sorry for trying to hunt you down and kill you. I mean, what if you had actually been killed? There would be no way out of this. I was so foolish, and stupid, and-"

"Boq, shut up. It's okay, I forgive you" the green witch said.

"Boq, we should get back to the fortress" Fiyero said, already heading towards the west.

"Yeah, you're right" the Munchkin said, following Fiyero, and the rest of the group followed suit.

X

A sigh passed Aequitas's lips. He had lost two of his finest Scrow warriors, but more importantly he had lost two of his brothers, for he considered all Vinkuns loyal to him brothers and sisters. At least all was not lost; at least he was able to detect magical powers.

X

The group continued to walk; they had left the savannah and were know traversing through mountains.

"Are we going to Kiamo Ko?" Elphaba asked.

"Sort of. The castle was destroyed, but I and the others built a fortress in the mountains" Fiyero answered, "And I do mean _in _the mountains"

"Impressive" Collins said.

"Hey, Elphaba, are you going to introduce us to your friends here?" Fiyero chuckled.

"Well, that's Roger and his girlfriend, Mimi" she pointed at them, "That's my sister, Maureen, and her girlfriend, Joanne" she gestured at them, "And that's Collins, Mark and Benny" she gestured at each of them as she said their names.

Fiyero nodded his head, "Nice to meet all of you. I'm Fiyero"

"Boq, at your services" the Munchkin said with a good natured laugh.

X

The group continued to walk for another half hour, before finally stopping.

"How much further is it?" Joanne asked, shifting on her aching feet.

"We're here" Boq said.

"What?" Elphaba looked at him incredulously.

"Check this out" Fiyero said with a small smile, and grabbed a hold of a place where the mountainside jutted out, and pulled.

Excluding Boq, who had seen this done too many times to be truly amazed, everybody was absolutely flabbergasted by the fact that there was a door in the mountainside.

"Well, come on" Boq said, motioning for the group to follow.

The fact that there was a hidden door in the mountainside was nothing compared to what was inside it. There were smooth stone floors, and separate corridors and rooms. Elphaba felt a surge of familiarity and knew that in a sense, Kiamo Ko had been rebuilt.

"This is amazing" Glinda said. "However did you manage to do such a thing?"

"A lot of sweat, quite a few tears, and a little blood here and there" Fiyero said.

"In such a small amount of time?" the blonde asked.

"If you count five years as being a small amount of time" Boq sighed.

"Five years?" Elphaba gasped, "That's impossible, me and Glinda were only in the Other World for less than two days"

"Maybe something went wrong when we cast the spell" Maureen said, and she added to herself, _"Maybe I screwed this up"_

"No" Orson said sharply, as if he knew what his charge was thinking, "For whatever reason, arriving five years late is your destiny. I'm not exactly sure why, but I do know there's a reason for this"

Fiyero led the group into a large room, which was filled with people and Animals. In the center of the room was a large table, and at the table, with a map spread before him was-

"Doctor Dillamond" Elphaba said, her eyes misting at the sight of her old professor.

The Goat lifted his eyes from the map, and smiled "Miss Elphaba" he got up and trotted over to her.

Elphaba was weeping with joy, "Doctor Dillamond, you're okay. You can talk"

The Goat smiled gently and placed a hoof on his former student's shoulder, "I told you I would never stop speaking out" he turned to the crowd. "This is who we've been waiting for; this is Elphaba Thropp, the Emerald Witch"

"And I'm Maureen Thropp, the White Witch" she took a step forward.

The room's reaction was not what the two sisters had expected, because everybody dropped to their knees and bowed, even Boq and Fiyero.

"Stand up, please, get up" Maureen said, "You don't have to bow"

At Maureen's request, everybody stood up.

"Fiyero, there you are. I've been looking everywhere for you" an oddly familiar voice said.

Elphaba gasped, "Dorothy Gale"

The young woman's eyes widened when they landed on the green witch, "Miss Thropp, you've returned, just like Fiyero said you would" she looked at Maureen, "You must be her sister"

"I'm Maureen" she said, shaking Dorothy's hand.

"Dorothy Gale, it's a pleasure meeting you, Maureen" she turned her focus back to Elphaba, "I'm terribly sorry about trying to melt you. I swear if I ever see the Wizard again, I'll give him a piece of my mind he won't soon forget"

Fiyero, who had moved beside Dorothy, smiled, "I'm sure he'd be quaking in his shoes, but right now, we need to get our new friends situated"

X

Fiyero was leading the group through several corridors, finally entering a room that was filled with armor, guns, swords and other military armaments.

"Rayne, you in here?" Fiyero called, and there was some ratttling, and then a Quadling woman emerged.

She was quite beautiful, her skin was a copper shade and she was muscular, but femininely so. Her hair was the color of autumn leaves and fell in soft waves down to the middle of her back, and her chocolate brown eyes had the quality of one who hadn't been getting the sleep they needed. She briefly nodded her head at Elphaba and Maureen, before returning to the armor.

"This is going to take a while, hopefully they won't need the armor before tomorrow. By the way, when do they start training?"

"Training?" Mark asked, growing even more pale, if that were possible.

"Yeah, mostly self-defense and weapons safety. Rayne here is our archery and firearms instructor" Fiyero answered.

From the hallway, a voice could be heard, "Rayne! The Witches are here, they're here. Oh Oz…they're here"

A Yunamata woman with straight black hair that reached to her shoulders and green eyes ran into the armament room, bowed in Elphaba and Maureen's directions.

"I'm Kya, I teach hand to hand combat"

"I'm Mark, but I doubt you care much about that…"

Kya smiled, "Of course I care, it's nice to meet you, Mark. It's nice to meet all of you"

Fiyero wasted no time introducing everybody. "I really hate to rush things, but we need to talk to Amina"

X

This time, Fiyero led the group through several more corridors, before finally stopping at a seemingly dead end, grabbing a place where the wall jutted out, and opening the hidden door to the outside.

"Lion?" Glinda asked, catching sight of the Animal.

The Animal ran up to the group, "Brrr"

Elphaba raised an eyebrow, "Are you cold?"

The Lion laughed heartily, "That never gets old. No, Brrr is my name, or at least it's the name I was given" there was more behind those words than the Animal shared. "Miss Elphaba, Miss…Elphaba's sister" he bowed.

"Maureen" she said.

The Beast bowed again, "It's an honor to be in your presence" and then seeming to just realize there were others, "It's nice to meet you all as well"

Once again Fiyero introduced the new members. "Where's Amina?"

Brrr thought for a second, "Last time I saw her she was sparring with Kuzaa, over by the big mossy boulder. Come on, I'll show you"

X

The sight the greeted them was hard to believe. There was a Bear and a woman sparring, and the woman was like no other they had seen before. She was an Arjiki, her hair was done in dreadlocks, and she was tall, unnaturally so, and muscular. She moved with a fluid grace that would seem impossible for someone of her stature, and the way she wielded the sword, one would have thought it was a part of her body. The Bear she was sparring with was no amateur, that was easy to tell, but next to the Arjiki woman, he looked like a total novice. Every blow was deflected, every attempted block was turned against him. Finally, the Bear dropped his sword.

"You win…again"

"You sound disappointed in yourself, Kuzaa. You're a great fighter" the Arjiki said.

"You are a great fighter, Kuzaa, but everybody looks like a novice compared to Amina" Fiyero said.

The Arjiki woman barely smiled at the comment, "Fiyero, we've new members, have we?"

"Yes, but I was wondering if you could focus on training Elphaba and Maureen" the young man requested.

Amina studied the two sisters for a moment, "I'm assuming the green-haired one is Maureen?" when Maureen nodded she continued, "Maureen, I can tell that you haven't experienced near the amount of humility that your sister has, and humility is the source of greatest strength"

Maureen was stunned, "I-I know I'm not ready for this responsibility. And the thought of killing makes me sick, but if this is my destiny, then I guess I have no choice"

"You always have a choice" Amina said.

Glinda, for her part, was interested in the way that Brrr looked at Amina, there was the sense of respectful awe that everybody seemed to feel around her, but there was something else in Brrr's eyes too, something deeper. And she also noticed how Amina seemed to be trying to avoid looking directly at Brrr. The blonde was broke out of her thoughts by a loud, chiming bell.

"Dinner" Fiyero explained.

X

Everybody was in a large hall with several tables, all filled with chatting people and Animals, and when Elphaba and Maureen took a seat, everybody stared and stopped talking, perplexed that these two powerful witches were sitting with the lowly commoners. There were large bowls of vegetable soup in front of everybody, with slices of bread, and water to drink.

"Ow his is reat" Roger said through a mouthful of soup and bread.

Mimi cast him a disapproving glance, "Don't talk with your mouth full. But you're right, this is great"

"My compliments to the chef" Collins said with a smile.

"Thank you" said Dorothy modestly. Fiyero, who was sitting beside her kissed her gently. Elphaba smirked at this.

"You cooked all of this soup?" Benny asked.

"Not all of it" Kya said, "We all help out with the cooking around it, we all help out with everything actually. But Dorothy, for all intents and purposes, is our head chef"

"Hey Glinda, you like art, right?" Fiyero asked.

"Yes" the blonde replied, "Why?"

"I wanted to show you something"

X

After dinner, and after everything had been cleared away, Glinda told Elphaba that Fiyero had wanted to show her something, and followed the young man.

"Where are you taking me?" Glinda sighed, as Fiyero led her down another corridor.

"This room" he said, stopping at a door, and pulling it open.

Glinda gasped. It was a sculpture fanatic's paradise. The room was filled with statues of people and Animals. The sculptures were so realistic Glinda almost expected them to start moving and talking, and unlike the other sculptures she had seen, these did not have stoic looks. On their stone faces were looks over anguish and happiness and love and hate and hope and despair.

"Who did all of this?" Glinda asked, awe on every word.

"Amina" the young man answered.

"She's amazing at this. Do you think she might teach me a thing or two?" the blonde wondered aloud.

Fiyero shrugged, "You could ask"

Suddenly changing the subject, Glinda smiled, "So you and Dorothy, huh?"

Fiyero smiled, "Yeah, been official for about two years"

"Do you ever think Boq will find anyone? He seems to be the only one from the little Golden Brick Road quatro that hasn't found anyone yet"

Fiyero raised an eyebrow, "Golden Brick Road quatro? And what about Brrr?"

"Oh, Brrr's found somebody. The question is whether he has enough courage to tell her" Glinda said knowingly.

"So our Lion has a little crush on somebody, I wonder who it could be?"

Glinda smiled softly, "Don't tell either of them I said this, but I think our Lion friend has his eyes set on Amina"

"Amina? Really? Never thought of her" Fiyero mused.

"Fiyero, maybe you're as oblivious as people say you are, or maybe you're to gaga for Dorothy. But I noticed the way he looked at her, like he wants to take her into his arms and kiss her, and love her, but he's afraid to because he doesn't think he deserves someone as amazing. It's the way I looked at Elphaba in the beginning"

"Does Amina feel the same way?"

"I think she's afraid to look at for too long, or she'll let something slip, and she's afraid of being hurt"


End file.
